Antje came to the studio to celebrate the birth of her fourth child who is now 5 month old. She told me “I never thought I would have four kids, but so far it worked out good.”

“I had my first two children with my ex-husband, and then I got married again. We decided we wanted to have children in common. I thought, why not just one more. But then it felt so good, we tried again! I think I’m very fertile.”

“My first two pregnancies were easy, I had no problems and I lost the pregnancy weight pretty quick. My last two pregnancies I had pregnancy diabetes. I didn’t feel sick at all, but my glucose test didn’t come back good.” But her experiences as a mother have been overwhelmingly positive it’s no wonder she has such a wonderful outlook on motherhood. “I was lucky, my kids were so good and easy. I had no trouble breastfeeding.”

When I asked Antje how being a mother has changed her she answered with “I was super shy at first, being a mother got me really confident. With my first child, I was alone in a new country; taking care of the my child all by myself made me feel really good.”

Antje, thank you so much for participating and sharing a little of yourself with us. Congratulations on your happy growing family, may your days be full of joy and laughter.

It was difficult to keep my composure during Anna’s interview. The love and joy, still so very fresh, was overpowering.

“It’s been kind of rough. It took us 3 years to get pregnant.”

“We were working with the OBGYN. At first we worked with my hormone levels, then they told me I had to loose weight.

I knew I couldn’t do it on my own so I decided to get Gastric Bypass Surgery.

That’s what these scars are from.”

“She’s the only reason I did it, I was happy with myself, but going into surgery I was told I couldn’t get pregnant for 18 months post opp.

I was 8 months after the surgery, I had almost lost 100lbs, and I was switching from one birth control to another and… we made her!”

“I was excited but also scared. I thought, what if my body couldn’t provide… I kept waiting for something to happen. Even recovering from the surgery, I knew a lot of people had trouble, but nothing. Everything was perfect, the pregnancy was perfect. Nothing was wrong.

I had a homebirth, and everyone I loved was there. Her birth was the happiest day of my life. It really was perfect.

Giving birth was amazing. Every emotion is running though your body. One second you’re pushing, the next your baby is here.”

After our session, Anna shared her homebirth video made by Tiffany Hudson Films and let’s just say you might need a handkerchief if you’re watching.

Purely amazing!

Anna, thank you so much for participating and for sharing yourself with us. What a beautiful journey you are living. Congratulations on your healthy pregnancy, amazing birth, and beautiful daughter. What a privilege worth the wait.

When I asked Amber about her journey as a mother, her experience was deeply tangled with her life as a military spouse.

“I never thought I would be raising my child away from my family… But I think that’s also a high point for me, because now I know I can do this… not alone, but away from my support.”

“I never really saw myself in this situation, but we’re here and we’re doing it. We’ve been lucky, we haven’t experience long separations, but my husband did have a job with lots of TDY’s (work related trips). Right now he works 14-16 hour days.”

“But I don’t feel alone. I’ve made good friends. This is just something we have to live throughout right now.”

As a fellow military spouse, it’s wonderful to hear the shining optimism in Amber’s voice. The long work days, constant separations, the moving, and the sheer uncertainty that rules the lives of military families is emotionally exhausting. Adding in the stress of motherhood can make for some cranky women! But sweet Amber is not one of them, well, at least not today!

When I asked Amber about how motherhood, particularly during pregnancy, has changed her identity she told me.

“It’s not about me, I have to take care of someone else first. There’s a whole other life to take care of.”

“It’s not your body, but it is…” Goodness, how that resonates.

She later emailed me to add, “I don’t think being a mother defines who I am, but it has made me a better person.” It really is a mothering truth. Loving someone else so deeply, changes you.

Beautiful Amber, I wish you a wonderful happy and healthy pregnancy. You are glowing with the amazing light of new life.

I am so thankful Heather came to me to share her amazing breastfeeding support story with me. The stories of breastfeeding mothers are so varied when people see serene images of mothers nursing their young, it simplifies the story a bit. It must be so easy for her. She feels so confident. She must have had no issue. She must love breastfeeding. But women who have breastfed know better.

When I asked Heather about her journey I was pleased to hear how having the right support made all the difference.

“I was very hesitant about breastfeeding. I didn’t want to do it.

My husband is a nurse and he convinced me that I had to at least give it a try.

You have to try, he told me over and over.”

“I was surprised at how naturally it came for us. It’s probably the most natural thing I’ve ever done. So my goal was 6 months.

Making it to 11 months for me is amazing.

I want to make it to 12 months and then I’m done.”

“I’m so thankful to my husband for encouraging me to breastfeed.

I thought… If someone like me can decide to try it, anyone could.”

The most common complaint I have personally heard from mothers when it comes to nursing their children long term is the lack of support. Wether it be from their spouse, their family or in laws, once the support drops, many mothers start to doubt themselves and their choices. This leads, unfortunately, for many women to turn way from breastfeeding sooner then intended.

It was refreshing, however, to hear quite the opposite story for Heather! What an amazing partner you have.

“I wanted to be a part of this.

I was prior enlisted for 10 years, and now being a mother, I have to learn to slow down.

I want to live in the moment.”

Heather, thank you so much for sharing a little of yourself with us. Your story is heart warming and I love that you wanted to dedicate these images to your husband for his amazing encouragement and support. He sounds truly awesome!

There is something about Gabrielle that I find absolutely fierce. The self confidence she has almost clashes with the soft gentleness of motherhood. So it should come as no surprise to me, or anyone who knows her that her interview consisted of a single word.

“Empowerment.”

For a moment, it seemed sufficient that just leave it at that. Because what else could this be about?

After all this movement couldn’t be possible if weren’t for women in search for empowerment. The female form has been demonized, sexualized, materialized, and dehumanized throughout the centuries. And while we’ve come a long way, women across the world are trying to take back their bodies and give them the respect, dignity and true meaning they deserve.

When I asked her to expand, she told me:

“I want empowerment for women struggling with their bodies.

It’s about being able to feel good about yourself.

Knowing that what you’re doing is important.”

Gabrielle, what you are doing is so incredibly important.

When I asked her if she had support for her choices as a mother, it was not at all surprising to learn that she was the first in her family to do things differently.

“I was the first natural birth and the first to breastfeed.”

Gabrielle later emailed me with some further thoughts on her incredible breastfeeding story.

“Breastfeeding and motherhood has been a journey with its highs and lows. Poor latch, supply issues and diabetes have made my breastfeeding journey intense. It took a lot of willpower and determination to not just throw in the towel and buy some formula! After 13 months of exclusively pumping for my first child, I was determined to breastfeed my second. We made it over humps, bumps and what seemed like brick walls to a now successful journey of breastfeeding.”

She also opened up about her intense identity change when going form active duty military to mother.

“Motherhood has been the biggest sacrifice I have ever made in my life. Giving my military career to be “just” a mother was a journey that was very hard to acknowledge. Surrendering everything in my life to provide a sole focus to my children was never an undertaking I planned on. It was not my previously planned life path. Though my life has taken a course I never thought it would, I now have full acceptance of my role as a mother, wife and my postpartum body. My body now has curves for a purpose!”

Thank you, Gabrielle, for coming to this session and sharing yourself with us. Motherhood is indeed an intense transformation, not only physically, but mentally, emotionally. A total reinvention of self. And yet, know what you are doing everyday in tasks of motherhood and rearing and educating and nurturing, you are doing something so very important.

Natallie is a beautiful mother of two girls who is now intent on making sure they are well on their way down the path of self love and self respect.

When I asked her why she wanted to participate in this project, she replied that she wanted women to feel proud of themselves. These photo sessions are about “Being proud of who you are as a mom.”

Being a mother of two girls, specially, Natallie wants her girls to learn to love themselves as they are. “I vowed to never say anything negative about myself in front of them. Nothing. I don’t want them to learn that from me.”

“I don’t want them to think… that their mother, the person that to them is so wonderful and special… that if she thinks something is wrong with her, then what’s wrong with me?”

Natallie, you are an incredible mother. The seed of self love that you are trying to instill on your daughters will surely take root. And hopefully, it will take root in all those who read this. Because the truth is that we learn this self hate. As we talked about this subject I myself remember the time of my life when I began to understand the narrow construct of what is considered beautiful in our society.

The only way to combat this narrow view of beauty is to challenge it. And that is what we are doing here. Challenging what is considered womanly, what is considered feminine, what is considered appropriate, what is considered sexual, what is considered natural, what is considered beautiful.

Natallie, you are so incredibly beautiful. Thank you for participating in this photo series and sharing yourself with us. I hope that you continue practicing self love toward yourself not just for the sake of your girls who admire and emulate you, but also to show yourself the kindness and love you deserve.

I had my three year old daughter with us at the studio during the interviews. It wasn’t ideal, but as a mother, sometimes you just have to do things with your little entourage, or not do them at all. But I got quite the kick out of her reaction to Annie and her twins. She practically shrieked with delight “Mom! She has TWO babies! Did you see? Two babies!”

“I actually have three.” was Annie’s cheerful response as she motioned towards her oldest daughter, who was still younger than my own.

When I asked Annie why she wanted to come to this photo session she answered with so much enthusiasm. “I participated in the group breastfeeding photo, and the experience was really amazing. I was wearing the twins and the online response was so positive. I had strangers messaging me asking me how I wrapped them, and cheering me on. It was awesome.”

“It’s hard to remember sometimes… that what we’re doing is awesome. I want to remember, it’s easy to forget.”

It is definitely easy to forget. Between the crying, diaper changes, cooking, cleaning, sleepless nights, and on and on, it is hard to see much glory in the day to day work of being a new mother. And add in twins and a toddler? Annie, you are my hero!

“But I can do the diapers, it’s really not such a big deal to add in another change. But emotionally it’s hard for me… I have a lot of guilt.”

When a family goes from having a single child to multiple, there is always a lot of uncertainty as to how the older child will feel. Will they feel neglected? Pushed aside? Will they like their new siblings? Will they get along? Will the fight? There is always a transition period for everyone involved and it can be a nerve wrecking time for everyone.

“I’m trying my best every day and I wonder… if it’s still enough.”

Oh Annie, of course you are enough. Your whole being a light with joyful love and warmth for your children. Keep remembering how incredible you are, how much love your heart provides daily, how much your body gives to all your children. It’s amazing how much of ourselves we give as mothers.

Thank you, Annie, for coming and participating in this project. Thank you for sharing what little is left of yourself with the world and giving mothers a voice to connect with.

Inspired by the incredibly positive reaction to her epic breast feeding photo, my good friend Erin White, from Erin White Photography, decided she wanted to do more. Trying to harness the energy from the first image she is now planning a series of images for breastfeeding mothers all over the word! Not only that, but the out cry from bottle feeding mothers to want to join in has compelled her to include them in future photos, promoting love, health, and nourishment for all babies! I can’t wait to see the results.

Today I’m sharing with you some action images from the photo session in Baumholder, Germany. The location was an hours drive for many participants and the excitement was exponential as we were planning a water photo. What was chosen was a lovely hiking trail winding at the side of a picturesque creek. Some participants came with family or friends to watch their older children. I myself brought my husband, he and my daughters, as well as other spouses, went on a hiking excursion as we worked on the photos.

It was truly a remarkable sight to see all these lovely women and children frolicking through the forest trails to the sound of swooshing water and song birds as we hurried to beat sun down. The joy and euphoria is truly palpable once we were all in the water shooting. The water was crisp, the air warm, a perfect summer evening.

Erin, you are amazing.

The joy that you are bringing to these women is incredible. The attention you are getting from this project will surely bring you positive energy and more incredible opportunities. I want to thank you for reaching out to me to assist with the event and the photos. I truly love this craziness and I couldn’t be happier to be part of it!

I had the great pleasure of shooting individual photos for the participants at this event, and the results were just jaw dropping. So much beauty and warmth. It was difficult to keep myself composed while I edited the photos. The pure love, the location, the stories of the women, and the sound of the river still ringing in my ears. Pure perfection.

These are the individual photos captured during Erin White Photography’s second epic Breastfeeding photo to normalize breastfeeding.

The photography is done by Liliana Taboas, from Liliana Beatriz Fotografia, who assisted with the photo shoot and helped documented the event.

There is no way to describe how powerfully beautiful these images are. Shooting them was one of the most thrilling experiences I’ve ever had. As I shuffled through the water I called out to all the mothers “Please! Don’t move! We’re doing individual photos!” As a look of uncertainty crossed some faces I added. “Trust me, you are NEVER doing this again! You need these photos.” With that a ripple of laughter spread through the group and we set up the photo as everyone made their way safely out of their water with their children. It was truly a magical experience. Thank you, again Erin, for including me in your project.

I give you, what I can only describe as a collection of River Goddesses.